Why Mages Don't Go To Hogwarts--First Year
by HolleringHawk65
Summary: Anders wakes up at Hogwarts and is practically thrown into the wizarding world. But what if not everything is as it seems? Set in the first year, sort of AU, and also with slight Anders/Hermione and mentions of Anders/f!Amell.
1. Chapter 1

**_Anders_**

My head hurt more than words could say as I sat up. I looked around, trying to figure out where I was. It sure as Hell wasn't the Mage Tower, which gave me pause. Had I actually escaped, or was this some new building of torture?

"Harry, he's waking up!" I heard a girl say. My eyes focused in the dark and I saw three people standing around me. One was a girl with the craziest brown hair I'd seen—which is saying something—another was a boy with a shock of orange hair, and the last was a scrawny boy with a lightning scar over one of his eyes.

"Hermione, I can see that," the scrawny boy said.

"Yeah, no need to point out the obvious," the red haired boy injected. Hermione was on her knees, and turned to shove the boy backwards. "Ow! Did you really have to do that?"

"Yes, Ron, I did. You were annoying me," she told him.

She turned back to me, brown eyes finding mine. "Are you alright? We found you in the middle of the dining hall! You should be happy that it wasn't Professor McGonagall-"

Ron laughed. "McGonagall? I would've been worried about Snape!"

I sat up, rubbing my head. "Where's Natalya?" I asked them.

They all stopped the chattering that had started between them.

"Who's that?" Harry asked me.

I almost wanted to bash their heads together. "Natalya Amell is not only the best apprentice mage in the Tower, but she also happens to be my _best friend_. She has dark brown hair, quite curly, and dark blue eyes. Rather pale, too, like you," I pointed at Harry. "You haven't seen her?"

"No, of course we haven't, or we would've brought her here, too," Hermione explained.

I pinched my brow. Their voices were grating on my ears and I almost found myself seeking Templar punishment over these idiots. Who in the tower hadn't heard of Natalya? And why were they wearing such odd clothing?

"Where am I?" I asked them, hoping they at least knew this.

"Hogwarts, of course. It's only the best wizarding school in the world," Ron told me.

"What's wizarding?" I asked, the word feeling funny on my tongue.

They all looked at each other, jaws opened.

"Well, he can't be a muggle, right? Muggles can't see Hogwarts," Hermione said to the boys.

"And what about his _clothing_? He looks like he's right out of a history book!" Ron added.

"Not to mention he said something about an 'apprentice,'" Harry reminded them, even though my little rant about Natalya couldn't have been more than two minutes ago. "An apprentice must be some kind of wizard."

"Or witch," Hermione said.

"Can somebody just explain to me what this place is?!" I yelled at them.

Hermione turned to me, putting her mouth over my hand. It instantly reminded me of the Templers, and I bit down.

Hard.

She yelped, pulling her hand away and cradling it.

"What the bloody hell?" Ron near whispered.

I ran my hand over my tongue. "Ugh, that was worse then metal," I complained.

"The fact you bit down on _my flesh_ is-" Hermione began.

"Are you a vampire?" Harry asked. "What else bites humans?"

"An angry mage?" I suggested, looking at the boy. "Honestly, don't tell me you've never done something similar.

They looked at each other again. I really felt like I was missing out on something here.

The door to wherever we were swung open and in walked in this _giant_ man. I'd never seen someone so big before, and I felt myself scramble up to hide behind a chair. A rather large chair, mind you.

"Harry? Hermione? Ron? What are you three doing in here?" I took note of how menacing this man looked as lightning flashed behind him. If you put this man in Templar armor, he'd could probably pass for a battle ready Qunari.

Harry stood up. "Hagrid, I'm sorry, but there was this boy-"

"He has amnesia, I think," Hermione cut in. "Can't remember what wizarding is. I think we should get him to the infirmary as soon as possible."

"Well, where is this boy?" Hagrid asked.

I shrunk against the chair, hoping I could blend into the walls.

"He's right over there," Ron said, getting up and pointing.

_Thanks for nothing,_ I thought, slowly coming out.

"It's alright, boy, I don't bite," Hagrid assured me.

"But he does!" Hermione stuck her hand under Hagrid's chin. "Look at what he did!"

"Hermione, it's only bleeding a little bit," Harry said. "I'm sure Madam Pomfrey can fix it right up."

I was getting sick of that girl complaining of how I bit her. I went over to her and grabbed her hand, causing her to yelp again. I saw that I had, in fact, bitten through the skin and it was bleeding somewhat. It reminded me somewhat of when I had gotten into a fight with Jowan over Natalya and I had clawed at his stupidly uncovered chest, causing it to bleed rather profusely. Needless to say, both First enchanter Irving and Natalya refused to speak to me for a week. That had probably been the worst punishment I'd received.

Back to the business at hand—literally.

I whispered a few words, moved my left hand over her injured one,, and the flesh healed itself as if it'd never been broken in the first place.

"You did that without a wand!" Hermione stared at it as if it was foreign. "How did you do that?"

The others were staring at me in shock.

This whole being so extraordinary and actually capable of doing something they obviously couldn't was very interesting. It was a feeling I wasn't sure I'd ever have, living under Natalya's shadow—which isn't a bad thing, per say—but I was grateful I was getting the chance to get out from under it. After all, they didn't even know who she was…

"I think that maybe this boy should see Professor Dumbledore," Hagrid said.

"Agreed," my fellow younglings said.

And suddenly, at the thought of punishment, I wasn't so keen on being 'special.'

* * *

_**Author's Note: **_I really can't sleep and I was looking on fanfiction and I saw the cross overs for DA & HP and I thought, "why not? Dragon Age is awesome and fanfiction is made for changing things" (I actually don't really like Harry Potter...sorry!) and I have no real idea where this is going. I might drag in some other Dragon Age characters, but keep in mind I'm not completely fresh on Harry Potter so please don't kill me if I get something wrong!

This is dedicated to Sammy7300 (it was just her birthday! :) but I'm not sure if she'll read it or like it because it's Dragon Age...but it's also Harry Potter!

Anyways, please review because they're always appreciated :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	2. Chapter 2

**_Chapter 2_**

I shifted uncomfortably in a very big, very plush, chair. I could probably sit cross-legged and not feel crammed, but I was nervous, so my legs were in front of me.

"What is your name?" The man who was asking the question was older then First Enchanter Irving, thinner, too. Remarkably thin, with a very long beard that most mages would consider hazardous. He looked down at me through his half moon glasses.

"Anders, sir," I told him.

"And where are you from?"

"The Circle of Magi Tower in Ferelden, on Lake Calenhead," I recited. It was supposed to be such a great place—sheltering those with magical abilities and giving them the proper ability to learn it.

_But_, on the other hand, every mage in the tower is being watched 24/7—even when you're _washing_!—by Templers. No, it is not a very spectacular life in the slightest.

Here, I'd seen 'ghosts'—which I'd first thought were demons of some sort and had the ability to cross to and from the Fade, but apparently they were the dead souls of wizards, or something of the other. I'd seen this very nasty man named Filch, whose cat is the first I've ever met that I didn't like, and _he'd_ try to jab me with some sort of thing-that-I-don't-really-know-how-to-describe!

And now, here I was, with Harry, Ron, and Hermione waiting patiently outside this office with Hagrid, while I was being questioned more then when I'd escaped the first time and the First Enchanter sat down to talk to me about leaving the Tower—this chat had obviously been ineffective, considering I was now in a whole other world! If only Natalya could see me now, if only she could feel the freedom I was feeling!

"Ferelden? Where do you suppose that is?" Professor Dumbledore asked me. I kept thinking about his name in my head—_Dum-ble-dore. _The more time I said it in my head, the more it sounded like 'dumb bleed door,' which makes no sense whatsoever.

Moving on.

"Not here," I responded, trying to keep this light—though I don't know how much lighter you get when you're talking to an old man in his dressing gown. I suppose I couldn't blame him—it was in the middle of the night.

The man gave me a smile, which just made me more uncomfortable, though I'm sure that wasn't the intent.

"Do you have any family, Anders?" he asked me.

_Here comes the tricky part_; "I don't believe so. If I do, I don't really remember them."

"Any friends, perhaps, who raised you?"

I instantly spewed out the first names that came to my head. "First Enchanter Irving and Senior Mage Wynne," I told him. "I grew up in the Circle Tower—you get raised like in an orphanage, I suppose, or at least that's what I've heard it's like. I've never been to an orphanage."

"It's quite an unfortunate place," Professor Dumbledore said, mostly under his breath, so I didn't respond to it. "And you have magical talents?"

I wanted to laugh and be snarky, almost like Jowan, but something about the Professor made me not do that. "Yes, sir."

"Of what kind? Benevolent, malevolent, perhaps both?" he asked me.

That gave me pause for a moment. "Benevolent, I like helping people."

"Are you willing to learn this world's kind of magic?" he asked.

Another paused as my fingers gripped the edge of the chair. "I'm not sure I can, sir."

His blue eyes stared into my eyes. Again, I gripped the chair even harder. This was worse than when Natalya would grill me.

"And why do you think that?"

"I…I'm not sure. I'm not from here, as I'm sure you can tell, and well, Hermione, she seemed, rather, uh, _shocked_ at what I could do. Maybe that makes a difference, but maybe it doesn't, it just seems like your magic is too different," I finished with taking a deep breath.

"Not to mention you have no money," Dumbledore said under his breath. I'm not sure if he meant for me to hear it or not, but I did.

"Why are you asking all of these questions? Why can't you just send me home?" I asked him, becoming irritated.

He raised a bushy white eyebrow. "It was my thought that you did not _want_ to go home, Anders," he told me. "But if this is not the case, I'm sure we can figure out a way to send you back to this 'Ferelden.'"

I bit my lower lip. As far as I could tell, Natalya was still at the Tower. All I had ever wanted was for the two of us to leave; together. And be together for as long as we wanted as free mages.

"This is a very big decision for an eleven and a half year old to make," I pointed out. "What is this place, anyway?"

The professor let out a chuckle. It was comforting, like First Enchanter Irving's. It helped me to relax a little bit.

"This is Hogwarts, a wizarding school in the United Kingdom. We teach young wizards and witches for seven years, generally ages eleven to nineteen, in the efforts to help shape _this_ world's young, magically talented, generations," he explained.

"So…this is voluntary?" I hesitantly asked.

"Well, to obtain a letter from Hogwarts is a high honor indeed, and it is voluntary, but most people do accept."

"Are there guards?" I continued asking.

"We have a curfew, Anders, and you are not allowed to go into Hogsmeade, the village below, until you are a third year—_if_ you decide to stay at Hogwarts."

I noticed he was trying very hard to be diplomatic. As he was trying to do this, I kept recalling Hermione's amazement as I healed her hand. Clearly this wasn't something a 'first year' could do… Did that mean my previous knowledge would be wasted? Or invaluable? Would I actually be ahead of the class? Did I want to stay here? It didn't seem half as suffocating as the Tower. There were no Templers. The only reason I'd want to go home is Natalya.

_Home…is that what it is to me? There's no way. That's not home. It's a prison for gifted people._

I looked up at the professor, my mind set.

"What do I have to do to stay?"

I was surprised as the old man smiled.

* * *

_**Author's**__**Note**_I am finding myself enjoying writing this! Please tell me what you think in a review :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	3. Chapter 3

**_Chapter 3_**

Professor Dumbledore informed me of what I'd need. Of course, quite a few of the things seemed pointless—why do I need _three_ sets of _black_ robes when I already have my perfectly good set of _blue_ from the Tower? And all of these _books_; why can't they just be available to everyone in a library, like at the Tower? And what was with a _pointy_ hat? What is a _pointy_ hat?! Why do I need a cauldron? What _is_ a cauldron?

_And what is a __**wand**__? _Is that why Hermione was so shocked at my capabilities? Because I didn't have a **wand**?

I finally voiced my question to Dumbledore as he was getting up to get some sort of thing that was sitting on a shelf. As he picked it up, dust seemed to fly everywhere, causing me to cough—Natalya always told me that I was allergic to learning as I would do the same when she'd place a (dusty) book from the library in front of me.

"A wand is what wizards use to help conduct their magic—it is usually very hard to do it by hand," he told me as he turned around and walked back over to me. I saw that it was a hat of some kind, and as soon as I realized he actually intended to _put it on me_, I accepted that my death would be caused by getting swallowed by a _hat_.

He put the hat down and for a moment—an excruciatingly long moment, mind you—_nothing _happened.

_Well, you are an interesting individual. Not quite from this world, are you?_ a voice in my head asked me.

_No,_ _I'm not._

_Where do you see yourself in ten years, _Anders_? _The voice said my name with interest. I didn't like it much.

_Ten years? I…I don't know. I used to think that in ten years, I'd be with Natalya. Maybe a small cottage, somewhere where there was no Circle, and we could live in peace, though that would be quite a feat for her._

_You were brave; to try to leave the only place you'd ever known._

I looked towards Professor Dumbledore, wondering what he'd done to the hat to make it talk to me.

_Oh, you're a smart one! You only just got here, _and_ you didn't have to listen to my song, but you know what I am! Sort of, _the voice mentally said to me.

_Sort of…Sorting…something about houses? _

_Yes! Yes! _

_Well, get on with it. I might as well know now where I'm going to be spending the next seven years of my life._

_You're very depressing._

_I'm away from my best friend who just happens to be the girl I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. Depression is allowed._

"Gryffindor!" a voice from nowhere announced. It made me jump in my seat and the sorting hat fell of my head. I quickly reached for it and handed it back to the professor before wiping my hands on my robes.

"I must say, I'm surprised; not to say you don't have Gryffindor-"

"It's fine. I understand. I'm not that great," I told him, getting up. "Can I go sleep now? I suddenly feel quite tired."

"Yes, yes, of course. Just have Harry and his friends show you; they're all in Gryffindor as well. Sleep well tonight, Anders," the headmaster said to me.

"And you," I replied before going over to the door and opening it.

Hermione stood up from sitting on the floor. "We heard! You're in Gryffindor!" She gave me a rather sudden, not to mention tight, hug.

"Uh, thanks. I think," I said, giving her an awkward hug in return.

I noted Hagrid was gone, which I was rather grateful for. While he seemed nice, he was, well…_giant._

"So I guess you'll be sleeping with us?" Ron asked, looking me up and down.

"I suppose. Professor Dumbledore just told me to follow you guys," I explained to them.

They nodded as if this was something they did all the time. They showed me the way to the Gryffindor Common Room—the 'password' was _currently_ 'butter beer,' whatever that was—and that was when Hermione left to go to her room and we left to go to ours.

The room had four _glorious_ beds. Harry gestured to one that was apparently unclaimed and I fell right on top of the plush blanket, falling asleep nearly instantly.

The next day was a Saturday. That apparently meant 'casual' wear; so robes were a no go. Since Harry was too short, Ron went through his hand-me down clothes and pulled out something that looked like it would fit me. I tugged on the pair of 'jeans' and plaid button up, keeping my boots on.

The three of us went down to the common room, where we met up with Hermione yet again. We then proceeded to the dining hall, which is apparently where the trio had found me last night, but I had no recollection of this in the slightest.

I tried to refrain from eating like a pig, or worse, but as the food was laid out in front of me, my stomach grumbled. More the occasionally, the Templers would withhold food from me solely because I 'acted out.' But, as far as I could tell, nobody was going to yank away the warm roll I picked up and started eating. Nor would anybody take the bacon, the thin pancakes called 'crepes' with 'Swedish' jam, or the scrambled eggs on my plate.

I thought this was going to be a spectacular morning until a rather pale—bordering on albino, actually—game over, dressed in a green t-shirt and black jeans. I noted rather expensive looking shoes, as well.

"What do we have here? You surely weren't here last night; I would've noticed your girlish hair," he mocked.

I raised my eyebrows. "Girlish hair? Surely you must be referring to somebody else, if I'm not mistaken. There is nothing 'girlish' about my hair. Though, the same can't be said about your voice." Judging from the redness that rose to his cheeks, my years of bantering with Jowan were finally paying off.

"Mudblood!" he yelled before turning off and stomping off. I smirked at the thought of the Templers hitting that boy with something hard—he wouldn't last an _hour_ at the Tower.

I looked at Hermione to see her looking down at her plate, full of food. Apparently, there was something wrong with it because she continued to stare at it.

"Are you alright?" I asked her.

She looked up at me, giving me a brief smile. "Yeah, I'm fine, thanks for asking."

The rest of breakfast went off without a hitch until Hagrid showed up.

"Time to take you for your supplies, Anders," he said to me.

I sighed, disliking having to leave when there was still un-sampled food. But, I had to be ready for 'Monday,' so there was no time for dallying.

* * *

_**Author's**__**Note**_Is anyone excited to see how badly I'll flunk when I try to describe Anders' wand? I am! ;)

Please leave what you're thinking in a review!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	4. Chapter 4

**_Chapter 4_**

"_You_," the slight—seemingly elvish, but without the pointy ears—man said to me, "must be harder to find a wand for then _Potter_!"

"Though he did end up with quite a nice wand," Hagrid muttered. He was standing next to the things that we'd bought for me—which included a substantial amount of clothes that actually _fit_ me. Apparently, the money out of this was coming directly out of Hogwarts' funds, so we had a limit to which we could spend.

We were only in Hogsmeade, though I had mentioned to Hagrid this was a direct violation of the rule—apparently though, Dumbledore had told the giant it was alright, just this once.

Boxes were being flung to me, the man came over, opened the boxes, handed them to me…the process was endless. Each wand I held felt nothing like the staves I'd only just been allowed to use, but nonetheless, I was accustomed to something larger—these all felt like twigs in my hand.

"Give me some help, boy, what are things that are important to you?" he asked me, sounding desperate. "Woods? Core materials?"

_Natalya. Not much else. If I'm recalling the tower correctly, few things were wood—just the beds, a few tables, some desks. But I wouldn't know the material of said wood. And what are core materials? Ugh, my head hurts too much for this!_

"Cats and oak, I suppose." I was not about to relinquish the information about Natalya.

He threw another box at me; this time I caught it. I took out the wand, dreading this endless process. All I wanted to do was go back to my room and curl up into a ball to sleep.

"Wrong," I muttered, even before my fingers were around the slim wood.

"What do you expect from me?" the man hissed. "You're just some boy that popped up in the middle of the night!"—clearly word travels quickly—"and you don't seem to know a thing about wizarding! How does nobody know you're not a muggle?"

My eyebrows rose. "I may not know a thing about _wizarding_, but I probably know _magic_ more than you do." In the process of this, the lights flickered, the air thinned; I heard things cracking—the exact sound of a twig snapping in half.

I saw the electricity without having done anything; no words, no movements of the mouth, yet little purple bolts of lightning danced on my fingertips.

I realized that it was my anger fueling this; realized Natalya would be berating me for being such a temperamental child. I dropped the box, releasing the tension in the air, causing the room to be normal again. I cradled my right hand, still feeling as if the static was still there; a tingling feeling remained.

I sat down on the floor, putting my head into my hands. _No good, none of this is good. Oh, what am I doing? Why play the part of a 'wizard' when I should be trying to be a senior _mage_? What is wrong with me? What in the Black City am I doing here?_

"I think the boy needs some more rest. I'll bring him back tomorrow," Hagrid said to the man. I lifted my head and saw that both of them were watching me. It was an uncomfortable feeling; being the center of this kind of attention was not good in the slightest.

I scrambled to my feet, going next to Hagrid. My stomach was starting to hurt; it'd been more than four hours since breakfast, but that wasn't the issue. I picked up some of the lighter bags and Hagrid and I left the wand shop.

It took about a half hour to get back to Hogwarts, I think, but maybe my time judging ability was off.

The first person we ran into was Hermione. She was quick to take my bags from me before running off to find Harry and Ron. The three returned, empty handed, and took the remaining bags from Hagrid. When I tried to take my cloaks from them, they all said "No!" in unison.

Hagrid left to go take care of something while the four of us went back to the Gryffindor common room—the 'password' was now 'Alpine'—which then lead to Hermione giving me what she'd been holding, her (presumably) departing to her room, and then the three of us going upstairs to our room.

I tried putting my new belongings in a decent order, but it didn't work out so well, not to mention my head was pounding too hard for me to think straight.

I sat down on my bed, earning a curious look from Harry.

"Isn't that jjust like when you get your headaches?" Ron asked the black haired boy softly, unintentionally causing the pain to be worse.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked, coming over to me. "Should I get Madame Pomfrey?"

"No," I whispered under my breath, surprised at the hoarseness of it. My answer was mainly based on the fact I didn't know who Madame Pomfrey was.

"We're going to head to dinner, will you be alright?" Harry continued to question.

I slowly nodded my head, causing nausea to flow from head to toe. I laid down on my back as they walked out, closed my eyes, and promptly fell asleep.

* * *

_**Author's Note**_Yay, I'm actually writing something and putting effort into it! *applauds*

Please leave your thoughts in a review! :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	5. Chapter 5

**_Chapter 5_**

_"Anders? What are you trying to do?" Though Natalya's eyebrows were raised, it wasn't in anger, but pure curiosity._

_I grabbed her hand and led her to what I'd been working on. It was a miracle from the Maker that it hadn't been discovered by any other mage yet. And here I was, showing it to the First Enchanter's apprentice._

_"I want to show you something," I told her, smiling from excitement._

_"Well, get on with it. Our lessons start soon," she reminded me. I rolled my eyes at her goody-two-shoes ways._

_I reluctantly let go of her hand and then pulled three books from one of the shelves. We were in the back area of the library, a place the two of us were known to frequent._

_Behind it was a piece of rolled up parchament; I took it out and brought it over to her, placing it in front of her._

_She looked up at me, eyes questioning and clearly unsure. She probably thought it was a rant against the Chantry or Templers, but for once, it had nothing to do with our imprisonment in the Tower._

_She uncurled it and gasped softly. "Anders, this is beautiful!"_

_I smiled at her simple compliment. It was a sketch of her—truly _her_; how I saw her in life, how I saw her in the Fade…_

_She got up and hugged me, causing her floral soap scent to rush under my nose. I absentmindedly inhaled more than I needed to, but, heck, the girl I had a crush on for the past for years was wrapped around me._

I woke up with a start, something having been flung at my head. Bright light hit my eyes, and I realized Ron and Harry were standing a bit away from my bed, and the offending object was actually an apple.

"Hagrid wanted us to find you," Harry explained. "It's quarter past eleven."

I stood up, rubbing my eyes. "Sorry for that; I hope I don't snore too loudly."

"Nope, not at all. Ron's the snorer in this room," Harry told me. "I'm surprised he didn't wake _you _up."

"I've been told like I sleep like a rock," I said in playful response.

The two politely smiled at me as I got up. I quickly changed, making a mental note that I should really take a bath later.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later and I walked up to Hagrid, dressed in another pair of jeans and a loose fitting t-shirt, along with my usual boots, chewing on the apple that had been through at my head.

"Fine time you rolled outta bed," Hagrid said gruffly.

"I'm sorry," I replied, trying to keep cool. "I wasn't feeling well," _because, as you saw, I started having a mental breakdown at the wand shop. Not really the best way to start off my life on Earth—or at Hogwarts/Hogsmeade._

We set off once again for Hogsmeade, the cool autumn breeze whipping around us. It was more than refreshing to realize that I was no longer strictly regulated to the inside.

I was, more or less, _free_.

Clearly, none of the wizards had even considered never being free, never being cooped up, never—

"Anders?" Hagrid broke my train of thought. I stopped in my tracks, looked down at my hand, and realized I'd been doing the electric hand thing again. Yay me, I'm a freak here…

He seemed to understand and we continued quietly to the wand shop.

The small man immediately saw us—or, rather, immediately saw Hagrid—and his face paled as his jaw went slack. Apparently, he actually hadn't thought I'd return.

"Oh, y-you're back. W-w-wonderful," he stuttered.

I let him start his methodic pattern—get the wands, bring them to me, let me slightly open the boxes…We were getting nowhere.

The man, whose name I learned to be Danarius, was off behind one of the walls while I looked up at the seemingly endless supply of wands. Why were there so many? Surely there couldn't be this many expected mages, excuse me, _wizards_ in the next hundred years!

Suddenly, I felt my hands reaching for one of the boxes. This one was different—it seemed to hum with energy around it. The box wasn't flimsy, but made out of real wood. I cautiously opened it, afraid Danarius would walk around and yell at me for looking at a wand he hadn't decided to show me.

What if there was a reason he hadn't shown me? What if this was—

My thoughts were cut off as a piece of wood _flew_ out of the box, bolts of electricity coming from the tip.

It slowly came down from above my head, resting on the hand I'd pulled away from the box.

"Danny," Hagrid began, "Anders found a wand. Quite old, by the looks of it."

I marveled at it; it was beautiful! Slim ebony, twisted into a simple product. The handle was made out of silver of some sort, a gem at the very bottom of it; the exact color of Natalya's eyes.

"_That_ thing?" Danarius asked. "Never mind; you found a wand. It doesn't matter anymore. Have a great time at Hogwarts, Anders. See you around, Hagrid."

I left, feeling content with my new wand in my hand, not weak like the other wands.

Things here were really falling in place.

* * *

_**Author's Note **_Yay! Happy Anders and me updating story! For those of you who have read to this point, I appreciate greatly and I'd love a review from you! ;)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	6. Chapter 6

**_Chapter 6_**

The moment I stepped into Potions on Monday, flanked by Hermione on my right, and Harry & Ron on my left, I instantly felt the stares. I took a seat next to Hermione, feeling safer—more accepted—around her.

It was interesting that day in class. While I had skimmed over the books for the classes today, I…I guess I'd been expecting more magic? Either way, making potions was nothing new. I've known several healing potions, as well as poisons, for years now. This was simply redundant and foolish.

_The tower has ruined me_, I tried to remind myself, putting my elbow on the table in front of me.

Professor Snape stopped his lecture. "Oh, is somebody feeling a bit tired today?"

I didn't think about the tone in his voice, but the words instantly translated into sarcasm. "Actually, just a bit. Though I think I can make it through the rest of class without falling asleep with my eyes closed." As I said this, I sat up straighter.

The class erupted into laughter.

Something shined in his eyes—bitter resentment akin to what Jowan would show me. He raised his wand, pointed, began muttering a few words, creating a sparks that shot right towards me, and…

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I raised my eyebrows. I think I was just as confused as everybody else, until I remembered I had my boots on. _Ah, yes, the wonderful boots_. Some resilience to weaker spells, if I recalled correctly.

"What are you in possession of?" Snape asked me, coming closer. He pulled me up by the clasps, my boots hitting against the table as I was lifted up. He looked down, his frowning ceasing as his eyes fell onto the boots. "What are those?"

"Boots," I honestly told him. I glanced down at everybody else's feet; a range of footwear, from boots like mine to other shoes I'm not sure how to describe. I noted Hermione's was a dull pair of clogs, much like something Natalya would choose to wear.

"I know _that_," he hissed. "What _kind_ of boots?"

I looked into his eyes for a moment, not sure of what to do or say. "Well, you see, I'm not sure. I pilfered them when I ran away once—I was in terrible need of boots, you see, it was raining buckets at a time—and I saw these nice pair of boots—Dalish leather, I believe—and I couldn't resist."

This was, of course, mostly a lie. Though they really had been spectacularly crafted at the hands of the traveling elves.

The two of us stared into each other's eyes for the next few minutes until the bell rang. He let go of my cloak and yet I still landed on my feet.

I grabbed my books and left with the Gryffindor trio before anybody could ask me anything.

"Are you alright?" Ron asked me.

I tugged at the wool cloak. It still felt like it was pressing against the back of my neck, on the verge of cutting off my air circulation.

"I'll be fine," I told them as I saw that all three were worried.

"It's abuse; we _could_ get him fired," Hermione suggested.

"No," I told her. "He's not too bad; nothing I can't handle."

"But if it continues on-" she begun to protest.

"I'll continue to handle it," I told her, going closer and wrapping my arm around her shoulders. "Honest."

"Pinky swear?" she asked me.

I smiled. "Pinky swear."

* * *

An hour later placed us one fourth of the way through 'Defense against the Dark Arts.' At the Tower, 'Dark Arts' don't really exist. Nobody likes to talk about blood magic or summoning demons…

But Hogwarts showed me there was more than that.

Of course, today we were just learning 'Flipendo'—aka, the 'Knockback Jinx—but the Dark Arts didn't seem to actually be kept under lock and key. I mean, I could tell it was greatly frowned upon, and of course there were bad people, but what if you learned the Dark Arts to simply find a way to better counter act them?

I put my thoughts aside as Professor Quirell began his stuttering again. "A-a-and-d-ders, would you b-b-be a-a-a d-d-d-ear and-d use Fli-fli-pen-pendo?" he asked me.

I'd been looking down at my boots—a force of habit—but had looked to the professor as he began talking. "Use 'Flipendo' with my wand?" I reiterated.

"Yes, you idiot, that's what he asked you," I glared at Draco as soon as his words had begun to leave his mouth. I smiled as I realized what I wanted to do.

I stood up, turned around, did the hand motion, all the while thinking _Flipendo, Flipendo_.

I watched in amusement as Draco was knocked off his bench.

I had just sat back down when Hermione said something, taking some of my amusement away from me.

"You did that in your head!" she said, clearly shocked. "I watched…your lips didn't even move!"

"Uh, yeah," was the best I could come up with. "Natalya taught me that," I told her as I sat down.

"She must be a great witch," Hermione said, her eyes sparkling.

"Mage," I corrected.

"Sorry," she said softly. "I keep forgetting-"

"That I'm different? That I'm a freak who can do spells in his head?" I hissed. Nobody else had noticed my way of doing the spell—they'd all already been looking towards Draco, anticipating his reaction. Nobody else was calling me out. It was only _her_.

She grabbed my hands. "You're not a freak," she told me. "You're wonderful and great. Not a lot of people can do that and definitely no one in this room besides you. It shows your dedication."

"Oh…" I felt my cheeks flush as I realized I was being a jerk for no reason.

* * *

After class, Hermione got up and was walking out the door, and I found myself hurrying after her.

I ignored Harry and Ron and possibly other people calling my name to grab the brunette's hand. "I'm sorry," I told her off handedly. "I'm naturally a jerk."

She laughed lightly. "Don't worry, I understand. Want to have lunch now?"

"Of course," my stomach grumbled to emphasize.

She rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway.

* * *

_**Author's **__**Note **_I can't help myself. I feel like Hermione would actually like Anders if they were to actually meet. So, here's one version of them...

The next chapter will finish up _this_ year for them!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

I tried to be good the rest of the day. Draco avoided me and I stuck with Hermione at lunch.

With nothing to do the rest of the day—apparently it was Wednesday that had the most classes—the four of us went to the common room and hung around. I found myself sitting upside down on the couch and my cloak a pool of black fabric on the floor.

In my state that involved all of the blood rushing to my head, I suddenly remembered what Natalya had told me to say when I was feeling, as she put it, 'blue.'

I wasn't feeling blue, but I was reminiscing, so I muttered them. "Lumos solem," and pointed my hand to the ceiling.

Imagine my surprise when light seem to pour out of my fingertips.

I 'shut off' my magic, as Natalya would refer to it, and the light stopped.

"How did you do that?" Ron asked me.

"I…I don't know," I told them. I stood up, fear seeming to course through me, grabbed my cloak, and was leaving as quickly as I could.

_I'm a freak_, I told myself. _A complete and utter freak who doesn't even use a wand to do magic. Maybe that was normal back at the Tower, but here_…

I found myself outside by the time I;d stopped thinking my thoughts. It was starting to rain, but I didn't care; maybe I'd be lucky and catch a cold and die.

I sat down on the ground, pulling my knees up to my chin, and just started crying. Crying because I was alone, crying because I didn't want to be here, crying because I was in a whole other world than the one I grew up in…

But at the same time, I was crying because I was _scared_ as I realized I would be better _here_ then at the Tower.

When I was done crying, I pulled my hood up and laid down, letting all the rain just fall around me, encasing me, soaking me.

* * *

I woke up in dry clothes on a cot. Torches on the wall hurt my eyes; I'd gotten used to Hogwarts' bright, airy, lighting.

"I was so worried about you!" I sat up as I recognized Natalya's voice. "They told me a spell went wrong, and..." The brunette shook her head as she reached over and grabbed my hand. "If you weren't so loveable, I don't know where you'd be by now."

Normally, I would be delighted to have her touching me, to be with one of my friends. Now...

I closed my eyes. "Please just let me sleep again," I told her. I wondered if I when I fell asleep if I would wake up in Hogwarts instead of the Fade. I didn't want to be here. Not when I knew of this whole other world where what I did, among the others of my kind, was amazing to them. Not after that horrid ordeal of finding a wand. Not after...knowing that I was friends with Hermione.

"I hope you get better," Natalya said softly. She bent down over me and kissed my forehead.

"Thanks," I said to her.

She stopped in front of the door-I had just realized I wasn't in the shared quarters, but in a private, smaller room-and turned to look at me. "Anders...did you ever run away to a place called Hogwarts?"

I propped myself up. "In a way, why?"

"You were saying it a lot...I guess it doesn't matter. Sleep well, your lessons resume tomorrow," she told me.

"Joyous. See ya, Natalya," I said to her.

"Good night," she said to me.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_I know this is really short, but it was a way to wrap it up. I hope you liked it and please look around for the second year! I promise to get around to posting in December (I want to try to wrap up my other stories before I try to tackle another big project! :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


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